


Thunder

by lannisterslioness



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: BB-8 brings Poe to save the day, Comfort, F/M, Rey is scared of thunder, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-04-10
Packaged: 2018-06-01 05:25:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6502390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lannisterslioness/pseuds/lannisterslioness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rey has never been a fan of thunder, it only reminded her of all her lonely nights in the middle of storms back on Jakku where she'd stay awake terrified, but when BB-8 promises her a way to help her with her fear of thunder, what he comes up with isn't exactly what she expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thunder

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Here's another fluffy one-shot for you guys! I know I've been posting a lot of them lately but I like to put them in-between sometimes to break up all the chapters, since not everyone wants to sit down and read a chapter fic sometimes. I like this one cause it turned out super fluffy and I've been writing a couple chapters lately where I've had BB-8 kinda talking but I think this is the first one I'm posting where you guys can actually see that? Idk, it's hard to remember something :P

_ X’us’Riia _ , that was the only storm Rey ever knew before leaving Jakku, it was nothing but sand as far as the eye could see, and all it ever did was cause her to lose time to be out scavenging. Then being on D’Qar after bringing Luke back introduced her to rain. Rey liked the rain, she wished it would have rained on Jakku and saved her valuable trading with Unkar Plutt for water as well as food. She liked to watch the rain fall on particularly hot days, watching the steam rise up off of the tarmacs as the water released the heat that had been trapped in them for days beforehand. Rey would make an event out of watching the rain sometimes, having Finn or BB-8 sit with her, and after she grew to know Poe better, she would ask him to sit with her too which would make BB-8 more than thrilled. Then summer came, and the gentle rain shifted to black skies, lightning, and the most terrifying sound Rey had ever heard. 

 

    It sounded like a landslide combined with explosions, and the way it made the ground outside rumble only reminded Rey of the Starkiller base tearing itself apart on that fateful day. Thunderstorms brought her nothing but fear, she Rey would run inside as quickly as she could when the thunder started. When the storms were during the day, she could handle it, she would occupy herself inside the base with anything from fixing up a few droids to trying to meditate within the safety of the base walls. But when the storms were at night, Rey was  _ terrified _ . Everyone was usually asleep it would be so late, there was nothing to see or do outside her dark room, and when the wind would make the lights flicker Rey felt a lump in her throat as she pulled her knees to her chest and buried her face, trying to forget the storm outside. 

 

    This week seemed to be an endless string of storms, and with everyone else busy while Rey was stuck at the base training, BB-8 was the only one who noticed just how fatigued Rey was beginning to look. 

 

_ [Friend-Rey, what is the matter?] _ BB- trilled as he rolled up to her, Poe had left him behind for scouting today, just to see if D’Qar was still free of the First Order, he’d be back later and while he usually took the little droid with him, Rey could have sworn she heard him ask Poe to stay earlier while she was out at the tarmac. 

 

    “I’m fine Beebee-Ate, I just didn’t sleep very good.” Rey yawned, covering her mouth as she did so and feeling a deep desire to crawl into bed instead of finishing her lunch, and if she hadn’t had afternoon meditation with Luke afterwards, she would have. 

 

_ [Are you not feeling well? Have you been coughing or having fevers?]  _ BB-8 was no medical droid, but he knew his basics to ask, and after spending years with Poe she imagined he probably had to ask them often as she learned Poe was stubborn, especially when he wasn’t feeling well. 

 

    “No it’s just…” Rey hesitated, thunder was something children were afraid of, or so she had heard around the base, she was nineteen going on twenty, she wasn’t supposed to be afraid of thunder. But BB-8 was her friend, one of her few friends, and one she knew wouldn’t even have the capacity to make fun of her. “The thunder.” 

 

_ [The loud noises from the sky that occur during rain showers?]  _ BB-8 questioned her to which she gave a curt nod and hoped no one else in the room fluently understood him.  _ [I know how to fix the problem!] _ He excitedly beeped. 

 

    “You do?” Rey asked curiously. 

 

_ [Yes, yes! I will help when the next storm comes, Friend-Rey!] _ BB-8 chirped enthusiastically. 

 

    “Thank you, Beebee-Ate.” Rey smiled and gave the droid a light pat on the head. 

 

* * *

  
  


    It rained again that very night, and as soon as the thunder started, Rey woke up, her fear causing her to shake already as she pulled the blankets up around her. She wanted to go searching for BB-8, he had promised a solution earlier today and Rey knew the little droid would never fail her, but not only was she finding herself paralyzed by her fear, but trusting that BB-8 would come and help her. A few minutes passed, four cracks of loud thunder to be exact, and Rey was in a spiral of panic by the time she heard someone knocking on her door. 

 

    “Come in!” She called out, trying to wipe her tears away and hoping the dim light wouldn’t reveal much, she didn’t know who would knock on her door so late, BB-8 would just open the locks himself and roll right in. 

 

    While the familiar little droid came into view, his half asleep owner was trailing behind him. Poe’s hair was a mess, clearly woken from a deep sleep, he had hastily thrown on a shirt and pulled on a pair of pajama pants to make the venture over to her room. Rey had never felt more embarrassed in her life, BB-8’s solution to her panic was to wake up Poe Dameron, the man she found herself slightly attracted to, in order to comfort her with her child fear. 

 

_ [Friend-Rey! I have brought Friend-Poe to help, Friend-Poe is very good at helping when people are scared.] _ BB-8 announced proudly as he rolled over to Poe and nudged him forward. 

 

    “Oh, Beebee-Ate, you didn’t have to go and wake up Poe for all of this.” She murmured, her cheeks turning bright pink, and while BB-8 failed to notice this, Poe did. 

 

    “No, no, it’s okay.” Poe assured her. “He told me earlier about you with the thunder. It’s fine. I was afraid of thunder too when I was younger.” He sat on the edge of her bed now, BB-8 rolling over to the door and shutting it quietly before returning to his friends. 

 

    “But...I’m too old to be afraid of this, it’s for kids. I’m training to be a Jedi and I’m scared of thunder!” Rey hissed, jumping when the thunder rang through her walls again and pulling into herself some more. 

 

    “It’s okay.” Poe said in the most calming voice she could imagine, a lazy smile on his face as he reached over and rested a hand on her knee, feeling her shaking with fear and the tears brimming in her eyes. “What can I do to help?” 

 

    “I-I don’t know.” Rey just wanted to feel safe, and right now as another crack of thunder rang through and BB-8 let out a sad beep, she felt so afraid. 

 

    “I’ve got an idea, if you trust me.” He said, Rey nodded as her answer. 

 

    Poe crawled up over in the bed, taking a seat beside her and pulling her into his arms, holding onto her. At first Rey was stiff, but when another bought of thunder rang through, she buried her face into his chest and let herself cry, wrapping her arms around Poe and hoping to muffle out the sound. They stayed like this for a while until the thunder died down to mere rumbles, Rey said Poe could leave, but he refused and wanted to stay by her side if she’d let him - and she did. BB-8 turned out the lights and went into sleep mode in the corner of Rey’s room; Rey and Poe lied down together, he told her a few stories to distract her mind until she asked him to sing her to sleep since she had heard his voice a few times while he worked on his X-Wing. She fell asleep with her arms and legs tangled around him, the faint beating of his heart in her ears along with the rumble of his voice singing to her, assuring her that she was safe. Rey didn’t expect to wake up to Poe the next morning, but she did, he was peacefully asleep and still entangled with her, and Rey couldn’t help but feel this fluttering feeling in her chest knowing that he stayed. 

 

* * *

  
  


    Every time thunder pierced through the peace on D’Qar in the following months, no matter the time of day, if Poe was on the planet he came back to Rey and stayed with her, though her fear - thanks to him - had subsided. It was a natural reaction to him now, to seek her out when he remembered she was scared of something and be there to comfort her, to tell her everything was alright. He hadn’t meant for their comforting friendship to evolve, but one night last month he kissed her before she drifted off to sleep, right on the lips, and she kissed him back until air became a necessity between them. They weren’t dating - not really - it was never said out loud that they were exclusively bound to one another, after all Rey was so young and everything was so new to her, while Poe was twelve years her senior, and while he felt something for her that he never felt before, if she wanted to drift off into someone else's arms, he’d take a step back and let her. He’d told her this a hundred times since they kissed, no matter where they were, he wanted her to know that she was free to do what she wanted and just because they kissed, it didn’t mean they were bound to one another. He’d said it again on another stormy night, Rey in his room this time and tangled up in him as always, her lips leaving his not moments ago and he was already saying the same speech over again. 

 

    “I don’t want to be with anyone else.” Rey finally stated. “You can tell me all you want, but unless you’re seeing someone else, I’ve made up my mind. I don’t care how young you say I am, if you’re the only man I’m ever with for the rest of my life, I’ll never wonder about anyone else, because I’ll have you, and that’s all I want.” 

 

    Poe had other woman confess their love to him before, begging him to stay with them, but that wasn't Rey. She was offering him an out as well ‘ _ if you’re seeing someone else _ ’, she didn’t want to hold him all to herself if he already belonged somewhere else. 

 

    “Rey, you’re nineteen.” Poe said with a sigh, he always felt so old around her, despite the love he held for her in his heart, she was so  _ young _ , and living a life on Jakku only deprived her of things he remembered doing when he was nineteen. 

 

    “Age is just a number.” Rey countered with a smirk, he’d heard Leia tell her that sometimes when he’d overhear conversations between them, when Rey was trying to hint at having feelings for Poe and Leia would tell her how much older Han was than her but that never stopped them from falling in love when they both didn’t want to at the time. 

 

    A roll of thunder interrupted them now, and Rey didn’t even flinch. She just stayed in his arms, staring at him with those big brown doe eyes she had, and making his heart skip a beat or two by admiring just how beautiful she was. 

 

    “You know, I’m really glad that Beebee-Ate brought me to you that night.” Poe said as a smile crossed his face before he kissed Rey, her immediately granting him access to explore the kiss more. 

  
    When the thunder rumbled again, this time Rey’s giggles drowned it out as Poe kissed her neck and the scruff of his two-day shadow was scraping against her. The thunder didn’t bother Rey anymore, but knowing Poe would always be at her side when it was there made her heart flutter. He peppered her with kisses until the thunder stopped, then he took his time with long and deep kisses, making every second count until they were both tired. The thunder subsided and Rey snuggled up close into Poe’s arms, pressing kisses to his neck herself before curling up and finally going to sleep. 


End file.
